


Maw of Nidhogg

by thefalconofthefall



Category: Pocket Monsters SPECIAL | Pokemon Adventures
Genre: Antisocial Personality Disorder, Character Analysis, Character Study, During Canon, Electrocution, Gen, Head Injury, Non-Graphic Violence, Past Child Abuse, Poverty, Swearing, Unconventional Morality, headcanons, power trip
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-09
Updated: 2020-11-09
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:21:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,414
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27464854
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thefalconofthefall/pseuds/thefalconofthefall
Summary: After waking up with dirt in her face in an unfamiliar forest with a damaged suit and body and no memory of what happened, one would expect Emma to make a quick decision on what to do with her association with Team Flare. Instead, she's at lost on what to do now with the legendary Pokemon Zygarde in her hands, and the five children she's supposed to eradicate and her guardian doesn't help matters either.
Relationships: X/Emma, X/Y | Yvonne Gabena, if you squint, sorta
Kudos: 3





	Maw of Nidhogg

**Author's Note:**

> Another appropriate name for this is "Emma gets drunk on power and suffers from the hangover as snake god psychologically analyzes her to get her not abuse his power".
> 
> This is all mostly headcanon, because I don't really think Emma is as nice to others when she is alone, and to me, she most likely suffers a bad case of antisocial personality disorder.

_ “Where...am I?”  _ was Emma’s first thought when she woke up to dirt in her face, buzzing noises, a killer headache, and static all across her body. It burns like hell, which she’s certain will rise on to this sad, pitiful earth. At least she won’t be crippled from that, lucky her.

She rolled over onto her back, hissing from the pain in her hips, lower back, and legs.She then strained down at her camouflaged belt. Seven Pokeballs. Seven? Why does she have seven?

Emma pulled herself up, gritting her teeth through the pain, then counted them again, peering into them closely as she brushed off the dirt from the broken corner of her helmet. What the hell did she do while she was asleep? Anyway, she counted Trevenant, Phantump, the four Hawluchas, and…”Z”? Zygarde!?

A surge of energy elated Emma, numbing the pain in her body almost. She hadn’t felt this good since she got a decent house owned by a decent person.  _ “I caught the so-called Watcher of Kalos! And it wasn’t a dream!” _

“I caught the so-called Watcher God! Me, the lowly street urchin everyone looked down on, having the Watcher! I’m now the strongest person in Kalos!”

She started laughing, cackling like those villains in those silly cartoons. Then the cynical voice in her head reminded,  _ “Zygarde’s technically not yours”,  _ and Emma groaned. 

“Godsdamnit,” she grumbled to herself, and then realized that she looks really odd, talking to herself then cackling, wearing this very weird suit. 

She looked around herself. It was very dark, and there were a lot of trees surrounding her. Well, shit. This is certainly not a good sign. She has to go find shelter, and fast. Sure, Trevenant would make sure she’s safe to sleep in the forest, but she didn’t like the idea of sleeping in the dirt and bugs crawling all over her, on top of these burns and this headache coming back. 

_ “You have gotten soft by living underneath a roof and having money,”  _ the voice noted, which she brushed off.

Emma pulled herself up to a standing position, stumbling as her legs almost gave way, like she just ran all across Lumiose from a rival gang or the cops and suffered some bad Pokemon attacks. Seriously, what the hell had she been doing? She quickly pulled out Trevenant’s ball and released him. 

“T-Trevenant...help me walk,” she ordered him.

Before she could fall, Trevenant caught her quickly, gently helping her up. “Can you...sense if there’s any town nearby?”

Trevenant nodded, and dug some of his roots into the ground. The trees swayed a bit, whether by the wind or the Pokemon, Emma didn’t care, until a few minutes later, it pointed ahead. 

She sighed in relief. Another piece of fortune for today. “Good...help me there.”

Trevenant looked at her oddly, which she responded with a firm gaze. “ _ Help _ me there.” No way in hell she’s going to be pitied by a Pokemon (well the Pokemon was formerly a human, but Emma didn’t really like thinking technicalities right now).

And so, Emma started limping towards shelter, Trevenant making sure she didn’t fall, the moon hanging above them. It was tiring work, with occasional static and her head throbbing, almost falling several times, but they finally made it at the front of a town with a sign reading:  “ _ Couriway Town - A town connecting differences” _

Sure as hell didn’t do anything for the problems Lysandre saw as a plague to society today, but Emma’s too tired and in pain to make social commentary right now. She  took off her helmet, letting out her long, sweaty hair relieved by the cool night wind. She clutched on it, and limped faster, nearly falling several times as she gritted through the pain. The streets were empty, expected since it’s at an ungodly hour of the day, with only street lights guiding her. 

“Ah...ahhhhh…” she groaned, her legs  _ really _ being a pain in the ass right now. “G-Gods, what the hell did I do while I was out? _ ” _

“Mrrrh?” her Trevnant murmured, looking down at her with his worried eye. She really hates this feeling right now.

“Fine...carry me then,” she conceded. Suddenly, Trevenant swooped her up. “Ah! Well...okay, I guess. Now try to find a Pokemon Center.”

Emma was glad that she was light enough to be carried, as Trevenant slowly made his way ahead into the town. The words she just said were quite odd to her ears, but she didn’t care. Sure, the center in Lumiose was rather cruel, being apathetic to her cries from escaping from her parents, but she’s no longer a beggar child. She’s the mercenary of one of the richest men in the land’s little group, and has the power of the Watcher God on her side.

The silence was maddening. There’s no one around to point to where they could go, and only the gentle pouring of a fountain to fill in the quiet. Trevenant would sometimes stop next to a tree, dislodged a stone in the path to dig a root into the ground, then either moved ahead or changed direction. She really wished she had Mimi with her right now to know Trevenant’s thought process.

Finally, the gentle red and white lights of the Pokemon Center appeared in view. Both trainer and Pokemon let out a sigh in relief, but before they could move, she stopped him. 

“Wait, we have to hide the helmet,” she warned, then handed it to him. “Hide it behind your head.”

Trevenant nodded and took it from her, doing it as she said. She peered behind them, seeing nothing. “Let’s go.”

It was still too slow for her liking, but Trevenant was burdened with her weight, so she couldn’t blame him. She handed her helmet for Trevenant to hide, which he complied by sticking it behind his head on a branch

Soonly and surely enough, they entered the center, watched by a bored nurse. She looked up, and her eyes widened at the sight.

“Goodness! What happened to you!?” she exclaimed.

_ “Wish I knew too, _ ” was what Emma wanted to reply, but she instead said with a strained smile, “I got lost on the route to here and slipped off a cliff, sprained my legs, and lost my bag. Then I got attacked by a Stunfisk while trying to find my way around the bog, and I have a bad headache from being attacked by Gligar. My Pokemon are also a bit worn out, can you heal them up?”

“Uh yes, of course miss!” the nurse cried, pulling out a book. “Just sign here and you can stay for the night, then go take a seat.”

Trevenant carried her over to the counter, where she pulled out her Poke Balls and put them on the counter, making sure it wasn’t Zygarde, gathered all up by the nurse and scurried away. Emma then picked up a pen and sloppily signed her name. Man, she really hated writing.  _ “Well at least she didn’t care to question my story.” _

She poked Trevenant, and pointed at the back of his head. Trevenant gave her her helmet, then she pointed to an empty seat, which he brought her over to and gently placed her down. “Thank you, Trevenant. Return,” she said, then returned him to his ball and slid it on her belt. She put the helmet underneath her chair and looked down at Zygarde, who stared at her back. It was a bit creepy, with no pupils and those bug-like eyes. Strangely enough for a supposed legendary Pokemon who wants to stop Team Flare and thus her, it seems to be questioning her, wanting to know what she’ll say or do. Or well...she thinks it does.

Emma looked away, not wanting to be judged right now by a Pokemon with a possible god complex. But it had a point...if that’s what it’s making. What would she do? This suit doesn’t belong to her. Zygarde doesn’t belong to her. She may be the most powerful person in the land right now, but that power belonged to someone else, and she hated that.

She sighed. If only being able to run on roofs, hack Poke Balls, and turn into anyone she wants was her power. If only it was easy to steal the suit for her own purposes and maybe have a heist every now and then. She could make much more money stealing a nice sculpture or painting and selling it to the black market than working for them anyway. Though the only way she could exercise it was targeting those five kids her age, sparking a dull twinge of pain in her chest that she ignored as part of the static.

Realization crashed onto her.  _ “Wait...why has Xerosic not contacted me yet despite me having what they want?” _

She looked down below her chair, staring at that cracked helmet. How did it become like that? 

Her headache started growing, and she winced, rubbing it. Okay, okay, they told her go to Anistar, and find Zygarde, but then she elected that was somewhat a stupid ass mission and decided to get some more Key Stones and Mega Stones because Malva would probably give her a raise for feeding into her delusional power couple dreams with Lysandre, get Xerneas because of the Ultimate Weapon, and then leave. But the stupid ass mission turned out to be completed on her part anyway, so she shouldn’t call it stupid.

It started coming back to her. The professor who was as nice looking as he was dumb, big guy (Timothy? Tyrone?) and tiny girl (Sana? Shauno? Gods she really hates this headache, she swears she knows their names, it isn’t like her to be sloppy) going off with the two Key Stones before X stopped her Hawluchas, and then his not-girlfriend Yv...Yv...Y (thank gods for having easy nicknames, but she swears that she saw Y from somewhere) going off to fight her off instead. She can vaguely remember flying, probably with a Hawlucha, as they pursued each other. Then she jumped on her because Y had Xerneas, tried to use the Balljack, but Y was quick and ran away from her. She headed to a Pokemon Center, so she went the other way, snuck into the back door (she probably broke a window though, to be real with herself), knocked out the nurse standing there (their security was kinda shit, not gonna lie), and pretended to be a nurse using the texture functions in attempts to steal Xerneas from her. She could safely say she succeeded, considering that she had Xerneas in the fight against the group of five, but now, she no longer has it. But she has Zygarde, so he can say that she has the upper hand, though her suit and body are in a sorry state. That’s probably why Xerosic and Team Flare couldn’t contact or control her, which would be very convenient for her if she knew how to fix her suit. 

_ “So that’s why they call it “drunk on power”,”  _ Emma mused, staring down at the helmet underneath her chair. She certainly can feel the aftereffects of too much drinking of it right now: waking up in an unfamiliar place, not remembering anything until just now, shitty headache, body burns, and she can’t be sure if the suit is as powerful as she likes to think it’d be thanks to her recklessness in using whatever seems cool at the time. At least she’s got a “god” on her side.

“Hello there miss, come sit here,” an unfamiliar but gentle voice called. Emma immediately slid Zygarde’s ball onto her belt and sent out Trevenant. She then shakily pulled herself up, turning to see that there was a wheelchair for her.

“T-thank you,” she stammered, limping over there as she held onto the arm chair.

“Do you need my help?” the nurse asked, moving over to her.

“No, I’m fine,” she assured, sitting down on the chair. She looked up to the nurse as she secretly gestured for Trevenant to pick up the helmet. “Can you take me to my room? I need to change out of my clothes. It feels quite uncomfortable right now, so I’d like a gown from here instead.”

The nurse nodded. “Of course. When you’re ready, I’ll examine your body for injuries.” She turned to Trevenant, looking at it weirdly. “Isn’t your Trevenant hurt?”

“I didn’t use him to battle much, but I’d like you to heal him up when I get settled,” Emma answered. “Also, I like having him around.”

“Okay then, and thank you,” she said. The nurse then carried her off, Trevenant slowly following behind with the helmet, hidden from view. They arrived at room 12, where she was taken next to the bed that had the hospital gown.

“Do you want me to help you up?” the nurse asked.

“No, I’m fine,” she said.

“Well, okay then!” the nurse chirped, then pointed at an intercom. “Tell your Trevenant to call me through there when you’re ready.”

The nurse then left, leaving Emma alone in the room. It was a simple room, with only white walls, brown floors, a bed, a nightstand, an empty closet, and a small desk with a small PC on it. But she needs to change out now, and get this suit and the helmet hidden in the closet. 

“Trevenant, come over here,” she ordered and it complied. Emma pulled off Zygarde’s and Trevenant’s balls and tossed them onto the bed, then pressed some buttons that would let her come out of the suit in case of emergencies, fortunately working as the suit hissed and opened up. She gingerly pulled off the “sleeves” of the suit, thankfully more flexible than it looks. She pulled the torso part down, then shakily pulled herself up, wincing from the pain in her legs and the burns.

Trevenant held her steady as she stepped out of the wheelchair. With her other arm, she pulled off the leg parts of the armor, and the suit fell down with a loud clatter. She pointed to the bed and he helped her move over there. She then sat down and sighed in relief. Well, the hard part is over.

“Trevenant, move the suit and the helmet into the closet over there,” she ordered again, pointing at the empty closet. Trevenant nodded, picking up the suit and placing it gently down along with the helmet, then closed it. 

“Well, I've got to change into this now,” Emma said aloud, making the Trevenant whimper and cover his eye. She was confused at the somewhat funny moment, then laughed a little when she remembered. “Oh, sorry about that Trevenant. I’ll return you and you can move the ball to where you want. No worries.”

Trevenant uncovered his eye and walked towards her. She took his ball and returned him, turning the ball sideways. The ball rolls a bit to the other side of the bed, its behind to hers. 

It took some effort and quite a bit of pain, but Emma eventually slipped into the gown. It’s way too cold to wear one, but it’s also quite comfy. 

“Trevenant, you can come over here now. I need you to put my clothes into the closet,” she called, glancing behind her. Trevenant’s ball rolled over, which she picked up and sent out. Trevenant very carefully put her sweater over her pants and skirt, then carried it to the closet. 

Emma picked up Zygarde’s ball and looked down at it again. It still questioned her. She sighed, shaking her head, then stuffed it under her pillow.

“After you put away my clothes, call the nurse,” she called it, then laid down on the bed, hand over where the Poke Ball is. She can’t really think about what answer to give to Zygarde without getting treated after all.

* * *

“Now don’t move too much and rest for as long as you want,” the nurse reminded after she wrapped the final ice pack around Emma’s leg. 

“Of course, miss, thank you,” Emma replied tiredly, and the nurse left, Trevenant's Poke ball, Chansey, and Audino in tow. She really feels like shit right now, with bandages around her head, ice packs all over her limbs and torso, and the strong smell of lavender in the room. The nurse’s pity makes her sick to the stomach, looking at all those old scars and her made-up story of her very terrible day. She wouldn’t be pitying her once she heard Emma knocked out the nurse from the other city over. Back when she was younger, if she got hit by a fireball, bolt of lightning, or her father’s palm, she’d tough it out and pretend she’s fine. Then again, Emma didn’t expect X to be  _ that _ insistent that Y really wasn’t his girlfriend despite seeming to be the type of guy to start a war because of her.

Emma laughed a little. Even though that situation was terrifying as hell at the moment, looking back, it was rather amusing, in the morbid way. She didn’t expect them to know each other that well. Sure they may have known each other for a long time, but X was struck by hatred and fear of the world, hatred and fear of the world she knew. But instead of facing it, he hid into his room and then tent on his guardian’s Rhyhorn, as it fled with his friends from the ever widening maw of Lysandre. She’d expect such cowardice would scorn Y away, who had taken upon herself to lead this group. She had scorned such cowardice herself, leaving those who fled to fend for themselves. 

But Y didn’t abandon X, and X, for all of his cowardliness, never abandoned her either. Despite the hurt he’d caused to her, she never once tried to drive him out and make him fend for himself. He had the Key Stone, the beacon for Lysandre, and was an overall morale reducer to the group, only worth as a battler and nothing else. He was easy to leave in the wilderness alone. Yet, they were loyal to each other, protected each other, trusted each other. X and Y may have not liked the other for their actions, but deep down, there’s an unbreakable trust, trust that she thought she’d never see.

These thoughts struck a deep chord in Emma, a chord that spread deep pain in her chest. She wanted to believe it was just the static again, but she couldn’t leave it at that. 

_ “Hmmm...why am I feeling this?”  _ she wondered.  _ “They and their friends may be bound by unbreakable trust and have a very talented and surprisingly kind leader, on top of the entire Pokemon league and a Mega Evolution successor on their side. But Lysandre has money and a plan in the making for years. What’s the point of pitying them when they’ll lose and I’ll win?” _

_ “They defied Lysandre,”  _ a strange voice said in her head.  _ “And they came out of it alive, and with Xerneas. They didn’t care about their strength. But you did. And you were right about it.” _

Emma looked around the room. Where did that voice come from?

“ _ Below your pillow,” _ it responded, creeping her out  _ a lot _ . 

She pulled up the pillow, seeing Zygarde looking up to her. She really hates this right now.

Emma picked up the ball gingerly, looking down at Zygarde with as much of a poker face as she could. “You’re the one who’s talking?”

Zygarde nodded. “ _ Yes indeed. I can tell that you have many feelings and thoughts in your head, and you’re lost at what to do.” _

“Why do you want to help me?” she asked. “Team Flare wants to ruin the balance and bring an end to Kalos as we know it, if not the world. Not that I care about stopping it. Hell, I’m helping them.”

_ “While I do prefer to not be confined into this ball and stop Xerneas and Yveltal from fighting, I know I must cooperate with you to fulfill my duty,”  _ it said. “ _ And I know, deep below your hatred for the world and your antipathy to your fellow humans, there is a longing for a foundation, a foundation you weren’t given but built, from when you were born and when you forged your own self.” _

Emma really wished she could talk back to this creepy telepathic snake dragon thing, but she was stunned silent. The myths of him being a Watcher and seer of souls were really true.

_ “I do not find any point to appeal you to the greater good or for the sake of others, given this hatred,” _ it continued. “ _ But I can appeal to the sense of foundation, the sense of order, you forged. You believe you deserve to live because you are strong, and Team Flare is strong. The five children guarded by Xerneas do not deserve to live, because they’re weaker than Team Flare.” _

“That’s not true, they deserve to fight for it,” she replied surprisingly quickly. “Those kids are strong, much stronger than they think, more than me even. It wasn’t just the two Keystones they have. They didn’t turn on each other, they followed their rules, and they pushed themselves beyond their limits just to help each other and save Kalos.” She laughed a little. “Honestly, for privileged rich people, X and Y are nice and amazing. So are their weak friends. They care for each other and the people around them a lot, too much even. I’d kick X, Shauna, and Trevor out in a heartbeat if I were Y. X may be strong, but he’s too much of a liability for the group. But they’re stronger and braver than I could ever imagine, especially Trevor.” She laughed a little harder. “I’m too much of a coward to ever want to do that to Lysandre’s face, even though I hate his guts. He’s brave, braver than I could ever hope for in myself.”

_ “What about your guardian, Cassius? He didn’t display any sort of strength that makes him worthy of living to you. Does he deserve to live?” _

That hit her straight in the heart, and she hated that. It was right: what about Cassius? He’s just a system administrator, not a fighter. 

“I...um...hm. I think...he’s strong, though I wouldn’t say more than me. He manages an entire region’s storage system of numerous Pokemon, which must be really tedious. On top of that, he allows people to room with them and doesn’t ask anything in return. But some of the girls there do help him because they wanted to.”

_ “Why do you work for Team Flare then?” _

“It pays well for sleeping,” she answered quickly. 

“ _ Do you think Cassius would appreciate you working for them?”  _ it asked.

“He...won’t care.” Emma sighed. “I would’ve thought he’d try to look for me whenever I sneak off to help them...but I guess he won’t care.”

After she said those words, more pain blossomed in her chest. Yes...he wouldn’t care. He absolutely won’t care. As long as he doesn’t know, he won’t care. Yes, that’s right.

“ _ You still haven’t answered my question about if Cassius deserves to live in your point of view,”  _ it pointed out. 

“I….I...don’t want him to die, as stupid it may sound,” she replied, laughing a little. “I don’t think he cares about me, and yet...he’s so nice to me too.”

_ “Then why do you not want to help them again?”  _ it asked.  _ “You deem him worth living, so why do you not help the five children? And just like those five, you defied Lysandre yourself by helping to free AZ and helping those three humans, whom you called weak. ” _

“Not in front of any of Flare’s witnesses,” she laughed harder. “Even in the face of defying him and stopping the weapon that wiped out Kalos three thousand years ago, I hid, and just watched. I didn’t want to be caught. I just watched, in awe of how much stronger they are than me.” She was cackling now, but she didn’t care if the nurses would come to her room. “By my own “order”, I do not deserve to live, but I fear Death too much to die. I can only feel strong against it myself with you around. Even then, I only acquired you from power I borrowed, not one from within.”

_ “Indeed, your order has deep flaws, but you ignore it, as it gives you a sense of comfort and stability,”  _ it agreed as it gave her a pitying gaze, which made Emma sick in the stomach.  _ “I know you thought of killing X when he blindly followed you to the headquarters of Team Flare, but you didn’t. You knew subconsciously he was strong, and you knew that despite that foolishness of his plan, his courage has captured your heart. Their courage has captured your heart, numb from selfishness and atrocities throughout your short life, and it’s confused.” _

Emma’s breath was taken away. Gods, this is  _ really _ creepy. Why does this weird snake dragon thing make her feel so...so...she had no label for it. But it makes her feel even more terrible and sick in the stomach, so it doesn’t seem good. 

“Yeah, he...he was a dumbass for doing that,” she agreed, trying to speak. “Yeah, it was dumb for him to blindly trusted me because Mimi hid in his Kangaskhan’s pouch. I could’ve killed him and helped Team Flare, yeah. But um…” She looked away from the ball, and suddenly, everything seemed more boring, despite the comfort it brought. “I…”

_ “You admired him,”  _ it remarked. “ _ And deeper down, it opened your eyes beyond your presumptions of people, especially those like him.”  _

“Well yeah, he’s a privileged rich boy who didn’t have to deal with the fact the world is shit,” Emma quickly agreed, trying to assert whatever dominance she had over...over what? “He’s certainly impressive in that courage, but he got fucked over by a guy way stronger than him because he wasn’t thinking straight.”

_ “And yet, despite his failure, he still freed Xerneas. He still helped to prevent the tragedy from three millennia ago to repeat now.” _

“I believe Team Flare’s still trying to do that again, so don’t get your hopes up,” Emma countered quickly.

_ “Do you believe that they’d actually go through it this time around?” _

Her head snapped to Zygarde, who now is giving her a firm, questioning stare. The answer was obvious to her, and yet, it...it felt wrong.

“Um…”

“ _ Do you?”  _ it pressed.

Emma turned to look up at the ceiling, and thought for a few moments. She then turned back to it, still questioning her. “I...I can’t say. I really don’t know the answer.”

_ “Why?”  _ it asked.

“Maybe it’s because they’re a bunch of rich overgrown brats with their heads stuck up their asses who couldn’t do even the simplest of jobs,” Emma blurted, no longer caring to limit her words. “Maybe they’re stupid in losing an entire godsdamn town of slaves. Maybe they’re so fucking stupid to let in a threat, just as stupid as they are, to walk in, sparking even more reinforcements to help him out that actually did prevent their first plan. Maybe it’s because even with Yveltal, that delusional petty bitch would still fuck up using it because she really wants to kill her other boss for some stupid reason or another. Maybe it was because Xerosic was so fucking dumb to make Essentia make sure they Xerneas in their HQ instead of actually saving her for their most  _ fucking important mission _ , leaving me to do whatever the hell I want. Maybe it’s because that despite the fact I screwed things up for them, I’m their best asset yet, and I deserve a godsdamn raise to 100 million Poke. I displaced Korrina and Master Gurkinn and caught you and Xerneas even if it was for like five minutes, those grunts couldn’t even get some rocks on their own for fuck’s sake. Maybe it’s because they treated Mr. AZ like shit despite being the one who had the key to that godsdamn weapon in the first place. Even though he was a shitty king, at least he owned up to that. And maybe...maybe because despite all of its flaws, they have so much money and power and resilience to continue their plans, and I’d continue those plans also because despite being the most insufferable and incompetent people I’ve ever met, their goals are something I can agree on and even achieve not because I was wealthy like them, but because I took upon an opportunity and used my skills to prove I’m worthy as them to be a chosen one and worth growing wealthy. Though in reality, I’m the most valuable person of the pathetic rabble.”

A long silence hung over the room after that rant, and Emma realized she was out of breath and panting. How did talking so much exhaust her now? She had to talk quickly before in life or death situations, and she never got this tired. Gods, she really is growing soft…

_ “That is quite a lot in your head,”  _ Zygarde noted, which made her snort.

“It’s exhausting,” she agreed, laughing a little.

_ “How strange to not call yourself a member of Team Flare, and yet still have loyalties to it because of the opportunity it gives,”  _ Zygarde commented.

_"How does it know that?"_ Emma wondered, but then replied quickly, “That...is correct. I rather get my head crushed by that Pinsir and thrown into a river to drown than call myself one of them. Everyone there is shitty and elitist. The only somewhat decent person there is Xerosic, since with a suit like that, he probably would be able to control me completely, but trying to get me to listen to him under hypnosis and cover up what I’m actually doing is a massive dick move.” She thought for a moment, then laughed. “Yeah, “massive dick move” doesn’t even get it started.”

_ “You have acknowledged it yourself that the suit, and therefore, Team Flare gave you power, but it didn’t belong to you. Even now, being theoretically free from Xerosic and Team Flare, you can’t wield it to the best of your abilities, because you have no idea how to fix it,”  _ Zygarde continued. 

“Well it still works, considering I managed to get this near to town from all the way the center of Anistar,” she remarked, then glanced at the closet. “I like to think maybe it’s safely mine now, since Team Flare hasn’t called me.”

_ “You have a rather strong confidence in yourself,”  _ it noted.  _ “You didn’t even consider that they may still try to control you?” _

“That’s too much of a liability for them at this point,” she pointed out, turning back to Zygarde. “I’m too good to risk being harmed. Hell, I’m the one with Mr. AZ carrying them on their backs. I’m safe.”

Emma mostly said that to assure herself, but her heart pounded from those dreadful words. She  _ really  _ didn’t know the suit’s full capabilities. All she knew was the drug-like thrill of living the most wonderful dreams that are actually real, of using power that she could never attain. The suit had allowed her to defy her standing: a regular human, a street urchin, an unwanted, and ascend to one most fitting for her: a chosen one.

But then, the thought of having to live with these adults stuck up in their own delusions and with limited resources, the thought that it  _ could  _ be approaching Kalos, or even the world, makes her even more sick to the stomach, almost to the point of vomiting. She had never thought too deeply until now on just how cursed the status of a “chosen one” is. Would she even be treated better if everything on this gods forsaken land was gone? And what would they do to her if everyone’s gone?

_ “You seem to have reached the crossroads after your long journey,”  _ Zygarde noted. _ “You are exhausted and tired, but the sun is setting and a storm is coming.” _

“That doesn’t really help me you know,” Emma snapped at it, and despite its seeming calm expression to her first direct jab at it, she felt terrible doing that. “Um...sorry. But what do you want to ask?”

“ _ No worries. Anyway, sooner or later, Lysandre will attempt to raze this land for his delusional goal for beauty,”  _ Zygarde continued. “ _ What will you do with my power? What will  _ **_you_ ** _ do yourself? Will you give yourself and me to him so he can suppress Xerneas and smite down all that oppose him, or will you fight until your last breath to keep my power away from him, to muster up the same courage you admired your five enemies had to defy him directly?” _

The elitist mindset of Team Flare. The self-righteousness and apathy of Lysandre. The incredibly insecure and delusionally lovesick Malva. The scientists’ simultaneous intelligence and foolishness. The powerful Expansion Suit she borrowed. Master Gurkinn, who would defy tradition to protect ancient secrets for the good of Kalos. Cassius, who despite his faults, gave all he had to her and asked for nothing. The gym leaders, so remorseful for their ignorance that they were crazy enough to attempt to close an ancient weapon with their and their Pokemon’s own bodies. The five kids whom she envied and empathize, bound together by something stronger than steel. 

Emma picked up the Zygarde’s ball, and with a lot of hissing, shivering, and suppressed swearing, she sat up in bed, looking down at the legendary with the most resolute gaze she could make. “Team Flare doesn’t deserve you,” she said firmly. “They’re too weak in mind. The five children and their allies are strong, but they are weak in resources and numbers. They deserve to have one more strength towards them, to fight for their tomorrow. Cassius deserves that strength too.”

Zygarde nods, and it seemed quite happy...she thinks.

“But they’re going to try to catch you if I release you, or use you,”Emma sighed. “I wish I could use you, but it’s for the best. And I...well, I’ll probably have to go there quickly by Expansion Suit because Hawluchas aren’t good transportation Pokemon, but I’ll go to Pokemon Village.” She sighed again. “I...I’m still not sure on where I stand with Team Flare. Maybe I'll know if I see them and the five children and the Pokemon League. But I know that I must keep you away from them as much as I can, and I must make a decision there.”

Zygarde nods again, now beaming...it’s really weird how she knows that.  _ “An answer I’m most willing to comply with. You have chosen well, Emma, and I trust in your decision.” _

Emma then pulled over the blankets, shivering more in the cold air. She carefully unbinded the ice packs on her arms, then torsos, then her legs. She moved them a bit. They ached a lot, but they no longer burned. With a lot of strain, she pulled herself off the bed, clutching onto Zygarde’s ball. Holding onto the bed, she moved herself slowly but surely to the desk. When she arrived at the end of the bed and the far reach of the desk, moving her fingers away from the bed one by one, she stepped forward, gritting her teeth against her sore legs, and grabbed the other side of the desk. Hanging onto it for dear life, she scooted herself towards it, hissing as the pain grew, especially on the leg in the front.

But much to her surprise, Emma reached close to the desk and its PC, sore all over. She pulled the chair out of the desk, then quickly sat down on it, groaning a bit from the pain. She then placed Zygarde next to a pad connected to the computer and clicked on the “Pokemon Storage System” app. It instantly booted up, fortunately for her, and quickly logged into her own account of the Pokemon Storage Center right away. Her arms hurt a bit from the fast typing, but she got in anyway, and that’s it matters. She then clicked on “Deposit”, immediately causing the pad to flash in blue. It opened up underneath the ball and closed after it fully dropped in there, the wire flashing blue. She then saw a small image of Zygarde appear on the top part of her screen, the message saying: “Successfully deposited one Pokemon”.

_ “Cassius owns the PC you know,” _ a sudden thought appeared in her head, and her eyes widened. She remembered that Cassius also managed the Pokemon Storage, so she could notify him where she was. Maybe she didn’t have to go home in the Expansion Suit.

_ “But remember, you’ve gone missing several times while you were working for Team Flare, and he never looked for you. He probably doesn’t care,”  _ the other voice pointed out, and she sighed. She hates that voice right now, but it was right at that point. She can’t stay here for long, unless she gets seen by someone who knows her and wants to question her. The five probably could guess there’s something up with “Essentia” at this point, given her exposed eye, and she really didn’t feel like giving an explanation to them tomorrow, especially to X.

Emma sighed in relief. Well, that part is done with. Now to go back to bed…

With the same struggles as before, Emma slowly but surely brought herself to bed. It hurts a lot to do so, but eventually, she got herself settled down to repatch the ice packs. With some more strain, she got them all back in place, then lied down. She was exhausted to the bone from all that happened today, but yet...she didn’t feel like sleeping. Maybe it’s the lights. She remembered that there was a remote control in the nightstand drawer that allowed her to turn it off, so she could do that later. For now, she’ll just...lay here. Until she drifts off to sleep or morning comes, it doesn’t matter. 

Emma will recover. She always will. She’s too strong to fall.

  
  
  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> I really like Game Emma, but Spe Emma is honestly more fascinating and cooler with being more blatantly fucked up from her shitty life and having a more impressive record of achievements. It's a shame that isn't talked more by the fandom, especially glaring as Emma seems to be set up as a foil of both X and Y, more noticeable with X though. 
> 
> Both her and X are quiet kids who got screwed over by society in their childhoods, but like Emma and X himself points out, X didn't need to face that because he is rich, has people who cares for him, and a roof over his head. Either way, this led them to become resentful and distrustful of people, but X has friends he can fall back on and gradually does trust other people, while Emma seems to distrust and resent everyone around her, even Cassius whom she sees as a nice person, given she never considered Cassius would die if Team Flare succeeds until Cassius shows he really does care for her. Both are quite violent but intelligent and observant people, with the aforementioned X crushing her head with a Pinsir because of some tiny details, and Emma knocking out Nurse Joy to get Xerneas and pretend to be Y because she knows Y means a lot to X instead of one of his other friends, but X uses brute force and intelligence for self-defense for him and his friends, while Emma uses it because it's part of the job that only give her and a select person benefits, but even said person may die because of her job.
> 
> While Emma and Y never really interact in the arc as themselves, they're complete opposites. Y is loud, outgoing, mostly rational, selfless, moral, very honest, and realistic-optimistic. Emma is quiet, keeps to herself, gets easily swayed by power, very selfish, isn't moral in the conventional sense, has an antagonistic alter ego, and very cynical. While Y supports X the best she can because X supported her, Emma tries to mug him multiple times and is the one who receives X's support despite all her attempts to harm him and his friends. Both also caught legendaries, but Y did so with Xerneas's consent while Emma's like "It's free real estate". Perhaps that lack of understanding Y is strongly moral is what makes her an unconvincing Y to X, which can be seen as a further highlight of the difference between the two.
> 
> The story doesn't touch upon them heavily, but they still have a big impact on Emma I think. It's also interesting how Emma, despite working for Team Flare, doesn't call herself a member of one to Gurkinn in the side chapter where she fights him and Korrina, and despite her misanthropic views, was rather easily convinced by X to turn against Lysandre. I think the fact that Team Flare is very elitist, canonically are incompetent in several missions because they have their heads stuck up their asses, and Lysandre honestly just seems like an entitled guy who got mad that all his money that he thrown at a near impossible ideal didn't do anything, so he decided to say "Fuck everyone else but people who are rich and I like" would make Emma hate them, but she tolerates them because of their goals, they pay well (though obviously not well enough in her opinion, and probably not at all given Lysandre's reaction when Cassius sarcastically asked him if she's going to get a lot more pay for the shit he made her go through), and she can get power.
> 
> Also it's a shame that Zygarde didn't get shown much here as a character in XY arc and still sorta doesn't in SM, so have him be Emma's very brief mentor.
> 
> And happy late birthday X. You may have a major but unseen role here, but you still get bullied for being a lovable bitchass rich boy.


End file.
